THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL
SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK
COURSE NO. & SECTION:
SOWO 530 (Section 004)
COURSE TITLE &YEAR:
Foundations of Social Welfare & Social Work
Fall Semester 2013
MEETING TIME:
Tuesdays 2:00 – 4:50 pm
INSTRUCTOR:
Jenna Tucker, MSW
Tate Turner Kuralt Bldg. Room 405B
jntucker@email.unc.edu
OFFICE HOURS:
Tuesdays 12:30 – 1:30 and by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Introduces public welfare policy through lecture and
discussion of the purposes of public welfare and describes the most important programs
created by those policies.
COURSE OBJECTIVES: By the end of this course, students will:
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Demonstrate knowledge of current social welfare policies and programs in the
U.S. and the ideals which shaped existing public welfare structures;
Identify and describe the social concerns which those structures have or have
not been able to address successfully. Special attention will be given to their
impact on various family types.
Demonstrate an understanding of the role of social work and effects of social
policy on historic and contemporary patterns of social welfare service
provision;
Rigorously evaluate existing research related to social welfare policy and
demonstrate knowledge of the development and implementation of
contemporary social welfare policy;
Demonstrate an understanding of the values and ethics of social work that
guide professional behavior in the conduct of public policy activities;
Demonstrate skill in strategies for advocacy and social change that advance
social and economic justice;
Identify conditions that promote or deter equal access to resources for
minorities and women and be able to discuss concerns related to race,
disability, gender and sexual orientation.
SKILLS BASE ADDRESSED: By the end of the course, students will be able to:
1. Describe the origins and unique characteristics of the social work profession.
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2. Assess clients for eligibility for major publicly funded programs and/or benefits.
3. Analyze the effects of social welfare policies on well-being and opportunities for
lower-income individuals and families, as well as for other vulnerable populations.
4. Articulate the underlying values and principles shaping major public welfare
policies.
5. Describe how legislative and administrative policy is made and how to influence
policy development.
TEXT:
Dolgoff, R. & Feldstein, D. (2012) Understanding social welfare: A search for social
justice (9th edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson, Inc.
Additional required readings will be posted on Sakai.
TEACHING METHODS AND EXPECTATIONS:
Teaching methods will include lecture and class discussion, multimedia presentations,
and small group activities. We all bring valuable experience and knowledge to the
course and sharing our perspectives makes class a richer experience for each of us.
Full participation is essential to your learning in the class, and will allow you to
successfully apply the course material in a way that is personally and professionally
meaningful.
You are expected to attend all classes and to complete the readings before class
begins. You are expected to participate in discussions by sharing information from
your reading and/or field experiences. I ask that you contact me via email, in advance,
if you will miss a class. Missing more than 2 class sessions will result in a deduction
from your participation credit for the course. Any student with significant difficulty
with these class participation expectations should speak with me at the beginning of
the semester so that alternative forms of contribution can be identified.
POLICIES ON THE USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES IN THE CLASSROOM:
I expect that we will all be invested in creating a learning environment of respect and
engagement. During class, cell phones should be turned off or silenced. I welcome
the use of laptops in class for taking notes or completing small group tasks. However,
I ask that you use them only for relevant activities – not for checking email or surfing
the Web. If distracting use of electronics is observed, I will need to strictly limit their
use to specific times during class. Your attention during class time is an important
sign of respect to your colleagues, and an important part of your learning.
OVERVIEW OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS:
The following is a brief description of assignments – additional detail will be provided:
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Weekly Reflections
A portion of your participation grade will be based on short (less than 1 single-spaced
page) reflections on your assigned readings for weeks 2 through 12. You may focus on
a single reading or on synthesizing points across several of the readings. Your
reflection should demonstrate your own thinking about the course content, rather
than a summary of the readings. Responses need not be polished pieces, but should of
course be understandable and largely free of grammatical errors. Reflections are due
by 5pm on the Monday prior to class, and you may skip 2 weeks without penalty.
Social Construction Paper
This 4-5 page paper will assess your integration of readings, class discussions, and
personal thinking about history, social construction, and social work practice
addressed in the early part of the course.
Budget Exercise
This exercise is intended to help you learn more about the struggles and dilemmas
that families face to meet their basic needs and the public and private sector resources
that may be available to them. You will be provided with a “story” of a family living in
a North Carolina county, along with their income and other resources. You will
conduct research (abundant resources will be posted on Sakai) to estimate what the
family will require to meet its basic needs, and what sources of assistance are
available.
You will enter your information on a worksheet (to be provided). Accompanying your
worksheet will be a brief (~ 3 pages) paper addressing your working assumptions,
conclusions about the bottom line, challenges encountered, and learning reflections.
Expert Panels & Advocacy Briefs: Social Welfare & Social Justice Intersections
This assignment will give you the opportunity to develop competence in (a)
researching social policy legislation, (b) analyzing bodies of legislation related to a
particular issue, (c) developing and articulating a position on a given policy, and (d)
designing social work advocacy agendas. Below are brief descriptions of issues to be
considered (these are negotiable, depending on students’ interests):
Disability
Examples of issues: Inclusion, equal rights, employment, education
Examples of legislation: ADA, Ryan White, mental health parity, IDEA
Criminal Justice: Focus on Adults
Examples of issues: Racial profiling & disproportionalities, criminalization of
mental illness &/or homelessness, hate crimes, war on drugs, death penalty
Examples of legislation: Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act (1994);
Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (2009); syringe exchange
policies
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Criminal Justice: Focus on Youth
Examples of issues: School violence, juvenile sentencing policies
Examples of legislation: Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (2001)
Family Violence & Child Welfare
Examples of issues: Child abuse (physical, sexual) & neglect, partner violence,
adoption for LGBTQI families, inter-ethnic adoptions
Examples of legislation: Adoption & Safe Families Act, sex offender registry laws;
Violence Against Women Act; U-Visas; Indian Child Welfare Act
Reproductive Rights & Health
Examples of issues: Abortion, parental consent, teen pregnancy and childbirth, sex
education, reproductive rights in the military
Examples of legislation: Abstinence-only education; TANF provisions re: teen
parents; abortion restrictions, Burris Amendment
Immigration
Examples of issues: migrant worker policies, health care, education, citizenship,
criminalization, amnesty
Examples of legislation: 287 g; DREAM Act; amnesty/refugee resettlement
legislation
The assignment has a group component and an individual component, summarized
here:
Group Component/Expert Panel: You will team up with classmates based on
shared interests in order to research the history and context of a social welfare
policy issue. Aspects of the issue to be covered include landmark legislation,
continued social injustices, advocacy efforts, and success stories. You will work in
teams to develop a presentation of about 45 minutes that:
1. Addresses the history or evolution of the social welfare system’s
response to the population
2. Summarizes multiple perspectives on the issue
3. Analyzes key legislation relative to the issue (one piece of legislation per
student) – including political, economic, ethical, and practice
dimensions – critically appraises that legislation in terms of its
underlying assumptions and internal consistency/inconsistency.
4. Describes advocacy efforts and successes; and
5. Proposes an agenda for action that is consistent with the NASW Code of
Ethics
Individual Component/Advocacy Brief: Focusing on the policy or legislation
that you discussed in the expert panel, you will develop one of the following: (a) a
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letter to the editor of a news publication, (b) an editorial or blog post, or (c) a fact
sheet. Your piece should be factual and evidence-based, and should clearly
articulate a recommendation or position on the issue. Guidelines for each of the
above formats will be provided and discussed.
Assignments will be scored as follows:
Social Construction Paper
Budget Exercise
Expert Panel Presentation
Advocacy Brief
Meaningful Participation
Total:
20 points
20 points
30 points
20 points
10 points
100 points
Grades will be assigned as follows:
H:
94 and above
P:
93-80
L:
79-70
F:
69 and below
Expectations for written assignments: You are expected to adhere to appropriate
scholarly writing guidelines and to use APA formatting, unless the assignment calls
for a different style of writing (such as the op-ed or policy brief assignments). An
abstract is generally unnecessary. A portion of the points for each assignment will be
allocated to writing issues. Please use the resources provided at orientation to help
you to master academic writing skills. The web sites listed below provide additional
information:
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http://ssw.unc.edu/index.php?q=students/academic/advising (Academic
resources from the School of Social Work, including an APA quick reference
guide)
http://www.apastyle.org/apa-style-help.aspx (APA Style basics)
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_apa.html (general
information about documentation using APA style)
http://writingcenter.unc.edu/ (UNC Writing Center website)
POLICY ON INCOMPLETES AND LATE ASSIGNMENTS:
Assignments should be submitted through the Sakai drop box, and are due before the
beginning of class on the day noted. You must notify me at least 3 days before a due
date if you would like to request an extension. If this does not happen, you will lose
10% of the assignment’s points per day (including weekends, and including the date
on which the assignment was due, if you submit it after the beginning of class).
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Incompletes may be granted if (a) there are extreme and unforeseeable circumstances
that affect your ability to complete the semester’s work, and (b) you meet with me in
advance to develop a plan and timeline for completing your work.
POLICY ON ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:
I assume that all students follow the UNC Honor Code. Please ensure that the Honor
Code statement “I have neither given nor received any unauthorized assistance in
completing this assignment”, with your signature, is on all assignments turned in. In
keeping with the Honor Code, if reason exists to believe that academic dishonesty has
occurred, a referral will be made to the Office of the Student Attorney General for
investigation and further action as required.
Please refer to the APA Style Guide, the SSW Manual, and the SSW Writing Guide for
information on attribution of quotes, plagiarism, and the appropriate use of assistance
in preparing assignments.
POLICY ON ACCOMMODATIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:
If you have a disability that affects your participation in the course and you wish to
receive accommodations, you should contact the University’s Disabilities Services.
They will then notify me of the documented disability, and we can meet to design the
appropriate accommodations to support your learning.
CLASS SCHEDULE & READINGS
Date
Topics Addressed
Readings
Week 1
8/27
Welcome & Overview
 Introductions
 Syllabus
 Discussion of
policy goals and
values
None
Week 2
9/3
Context, Framework
for Exploring Social
Welfare
 Social
Construction
 Definitions of
Social Welfare
Dolgoff & Feldstein:
Ch. 1: Socioeconomic Structure, Human Needs, &
Mutual Responsibility
Ch. 3: Social Values & Social Welfare: England from
the Middle Ages Onward
Ch. 4: Social Values & Social Welfare: The
American Experience I (read through p. 58)
Ch. 12: Social Work: The Emergence of a Profession
(read pp. 291-296).
History to 1900
 Elizabethan Poor
Laws
 Colonial America
 Civil War Era &
Reconstruction
Articles/Chapters:
Schneider A & Ingram, H. (1993) Social
construction of target populations: Implications
for politics & policy. The American Political
Science Review 87(2), 334-347.
Early Social Work
Practice
 Charity
Organization
Societies
 Settlement
Houses
Week 3
9/10
The Progressive Era
 Industrialization
 Social Reforms
 Social Darwinism
 Eugenics
Social Work in the
Progressive Era
 African
American
Pioneers
 Social Work
Approaches to
D & F:
Ch. 4: Social Values & Social Welfare: The
American Experience I (read pp. 59-78).
Ch. 5: Social Values & Social Welfare: The
American Experience II (read pp. 81-83).
Ch. 12: Social Work: The Emergence of a
Profession (read pp. 297-301).
Articles/Chapters:
Carlton-LaNey, I. (2001). African American
leadership: An empowerment tradition in social
welfare history. Washington, DC: NASW Press.
Read Chapter 2: African Americans & social
Due
Informational
survey and
political
compass
results
Date
Topics Addressed
Progressive
Reforms &
Eugenics
Readings
Due
work in Philadelphia, 1900–1930.
Schoen, J. (2011). Reassessing eugenic sterilization:
The case of North Carolina. In P. Lombardo
(Ed.), A Century of Eugenics in America: From
the Indiana Experiment to the Human Genome
Era (pp. 141-160). Bloomington, IN: Indiana
University Press.
Optional:
Park, Y. & Kemp, S. (2006). “Little alien colonies”:
Representations of immigrants & their
neighborhoods in social work discourse,
1875-1924. Social Service Review, 80(4), 705734.
Week 4
9/17
The Great Depression
 New Deal
 Social Security
Act
D & F:
Ch. 5: Social Values & Social Welfare: The
American Experience II (read pp. 83-84).
Ch. 12: Social Work: The Emergence of a
Profession (read pp. 302-304).
Social Work Practice
Week 5
9/24
History
 WWII & Postwar
America
 The Great
Society
 Federalism
 War on Poverty
 Civil Rights
Movement
 New Federalism
D & F:
Ch. 5: Social Values & Social Welfare: The
American Experience II (read pp. 84-97)
Articles/Chapters:
Linhorst, D. (2002). Federalism & social justice:
implications for social work. Social Work,
47(3), 201-208.
Social Work Practice
Week 6
10/1
Contemporary Social
Welfare Policy
 The Importance
of Ideology
 Types of Social
Welfare
 Dimensions for
Analyzing Social
Welfare Policy
D & F:
Ch. 6: Concepts for Social Welfare
Ch. 7: Examining a Social Welfare Program within
the Context of Social Justice
Ch. 9: Current Social Welfare Programs: Economic
Security (read pp. 186-206)
Ch. 10: Social Welfare Programs: Sustaining the
Quality of Life (Read section on Medicare,
pp. 225-228)
Social
Construction
Paper
Date
Topics Addressed
 Policy
Development
Universal Social
Welfare Programs
 Social Security
 Medicare
Week 7
10/8
Examining Poverty
 Rates & definitions
 Poverty line &
critiques
 Impact of poverty
Residual Social
Welfare Programs
 Temporary
Assistance for
Needy Families
(TANF)
 Supplemental
Nutrition
Assistance
Program (SNAP)
 Housing assistance
 Supplemental
Security Income
(SSI)
 Medicaid
Week 8
10/15
Critique of Welfare &
Governmental
Response to Poverty
 Impact of TANF
 Ideological Battles
Market-Based
Approaches to
Poverty Relief
Readings
Articles/Chapters:
Thyer, B. A. (2010) Social justice: A conservative
perspective, Journal of Comparative Social
Welfare, 26(2), 261 – 274.
D & F:
Ch. 8: The Welfare Society & its Clients (read pp.
153-174)
Ch. 9: Current Social Welfare Programs: Economic
Security (read pp. 207-214)
Ch. 10: Social Welfare Programs: Sustaining the
Quality of Life (Read section on Medicaid,
pp. 229-233, & Nutrition, pp. 240-251)
Articles/Chapters:
Action for Children North Carolina (2011). Children
in the recession (Economic Security Issue Brief).
Read pp. 4-16.
Boushey, H. & Weller, C.E. (2005). What the
numbers tell us. In J. Lardner & D.A. Smith
(Eds.), Inequality matters, (pp. 27-40). New
York: The New Press.
D & F:
Ch. 9: Current Social Welfare Programs: Economic
Security (read pp. 216-218)
Articles/Chapters:
Berlin, G. (2010). Rethinking welfare in the great
recession: Issues in the reauthorization of
Temporary Aid to Needy Families. Washington,
DC: MDRC.
Cooney, K. & Shanks, T. R. (2010) New approaches
to old problems: Market‐based strategies for
poverty alleviation. Social Services Review 84(1)
29-56.
Due
Date
Topics Addressed
Readings
Due
Rank, M. (2011). Rethinking American poverty.
Contexts (10), 16-21.
Rector, R. & Johnson, K. (2004). Understanding
poverty in America. Washington, DC: Heritage
Foundation. Retrieved from
http://www.heritage.org/Research/Welfare/upl
oad/53977_1.pdf
Sawhill, I. (2003). The behavioral aspects of
poverty. The Public Interest (153), 79-93.
Shapiro, T. (2004). Assets for equality (pp. 183-204).
In The hidden cost of being African-American:
How wealth perpetuates inequality. New York:
Oxford.
Week 9
10/22
The Current Health
Care Safety Net
 Healthcare
coverage & reform
 Health disparities
D & F:
Ch. 10: Social Welfare Programs: Sustaining the
Quality of Life (Read section on the
Affordable Care Act, pp. 234-240)
Articles/Chapters:
Horton, S. (2006). The double burden on safety net
providers: Placing health disparities in the
context of the privatization of health care in the
US. Social Science & Medicine, 63(10), 2702-2714.
Keefe, R. H. (2010). Health disparities: A primer for
public health social workers. Social Work in
Public Health, 25(3/4), 237-257.
Woolf, S. H. (2009). Social policy as health policy.
[Opinion]. JAMA: Journal of the American
Medical Association, 301(11), 1166-1169.
Week 10
10/29
The Current Mental
Health & Substance
Abuse Safety Net
 MH reform in
North Carolina
 Intersections with
homelessness,
criminal justice, &
other safety net
systems
D & F:
Ch. 10: Social Welfare Programs: Sustaining the
Quality of Life (Read sections on mental
health & corrections, pp. 262-266)
Articles/Chapters:
Baillargeon, J., Hoge, S., & Penn, J. V. (2010).
Addressing the challenge of community reentry
among released inmates with serious mental
illness. American Journal of Community
Budget
Assignment
Date
Topics Addressed
Readings
Psychology, 46(3/4), 361-375.
Newman, S., & Goldman, H. (2008). Putting
housing first, making housing last: housing
policy for persons with severe mental illness.
American Journal of Psychiatry, 165(10), 12421248
Optional:
Scheid, T. L. (2008). Competing institutional
demands: A framework for understanding
mental health policy. Social Theory & Health,
6(4), 291-308.
Week 11
11/5
Policies Impacting
Children & Families
Child Welfare
 Racial
disproportionality
 Indian Child
Welfare Act
 Family Court
D & F:
Ch. 10: Social Welfare Programs: Sustaining the
Quality of Life (read pp. 255-262)
Articles/Chapters:
Haskins, R., Paxson, C., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2009).
Social science rising: A tale of evidence
shaping public policy. Princeton, NJ: The
Future of Children. Retrieved from
http://futureofchildren.org/futureofchildren
/publications/docs/19_02_PolicyBrief.pdf
Norris, C. (2013). Dirty secret no. 1 in Obamacare.
Townhall.com.
Week 12
11/12
Policy Advocacy &
Activism
D & F:
Ch. 12: Social Work: The Emergence of a Profession
(read pp. 304-307, 313-317)
Articles/Chapters:
Faulkner, A., & Lindsey, A. (2004). Grassroots
meets homophobia: A rocky mountain success
story. Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services,
16(3/4), 113-128.
Figueira-McDonough, J. (1993). Policy practice:
The neglected side of social work intervention.
Social Work, 38(2), 179-188.
Selections from NASW Legislative Summaries from
2013
Due
Date
Topics Addressed
Readings
Week 13
11/19
Expert Panel Presentations
Week 14
11/26
Expert Panel Presentations
Week 15
12/3
Expert Panel Presentations
12/7
Letter to Editor, Editorial, or Fact Sheet Due
Due